Dreamworld Inquest: Thunder river rapids ride the most difficult to operate
SHOCKING details surrounding the operation of the Thunder River Rapids ride has emerged following the second day of inquest into the Dreamworld tragedy. Follow our rolling coverage here.
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The ‘critical’ 20 seconds after rafts collided
Kids strapped to raft as horror unfolded
Ride operator hit emergency stop button ‘two or three times’
Senior operator received 30 minutes of ‘refresher’ training
Thunder River Rapids ride ‘most difficult’ for operators
RIDE operator Peter Nemeth did not know the Thunder River Rapids Ride’s two emergency stop buttons worked at different speeds, an inquest has heard.
Under questioning from barrister representing Cindy Low’s family, Matthew Hickey, Mr Nemeth said he was not aware the button near him on the main control panel took about eight seconds to stop the conveyor belt.
He said he was also not aware the button near the ride operator working with him, Courtney Williams, stopped the conveyor in just two seconds.
Mr Hickey asked: “If you had known the emergency stop button near Courtney Williams (stopped the conveyor faster) you would have been prepared to move to that place to stop the conveyor more quickly.”
Mr Nemeth: “Yes.”
Mr Hickey: “But you didn’t do that because you didn’t know that was possible?”
Mr Nemeth: “Yes, that is correct.”
Days before the incident a memo had been sent to all ride operators urging them not to use the emergency button which was near Ms Williams unless the main control panel was not attended.
The inquest has adjourned for the day.
THUNDER RIVER RAPIDS RIDE ‘MOST DIFFICULT’ FOR OPERATORS
THE Thunder River Rapids ride was the most difficult in Dreamworld for operators to look after, the Southport Coroner’s Court has heard.
Ride operator Peter- Nemeth, who was manning the ride the day of the disaster, told the inquest the noise at the ride from music, the pumps and the queues contributed to it being difficult to manage.
“(The Thunder River Rapids ride) was the most stressful out of all the rides,” he said.
“There were much more things to look out for.”
Mr Nemeth said he was qualified to operate nearly all of the rides in the park and was one of the top ten operators.
The experienced operator had first started with the park in 2012 after working as a courier.
It was his first job where he had to operate heavy machinery.
Mr Nemeth also told the court he was responsible for doing three monthly safety audits and presenting his findings to management.
He said he had been trained by the person who did the audits before him.
“I would do all the rides by myself unless the operator was there at the time and I would ask what they think of this and what they think of that,” he said.
Mr Nemeth said he was concerned with what affected operators and the public as well.
Mr Nemeth said a single shut down button on the Thunder River Rapids ride would have “been easier”
Barrister representing Cindy Low’s family Matthew Hickey asked about the tragedy: “If there had been a single button would that have made an instinctive response easier?”
“It’s hard to tell. I cannot really comment not that,” Mr Nemeth responded.
Mr Nemeth then said it “probably would have” been easier if there was just one button to stop the ride rather than multiple stop buttons.
Mr Nemeth said his training did not involve any drills but that it would have been of assistance to him.
SENIOR OPERATOR RECEIVED JUST 30 MINUTES OF ‘REFRESHER’ TRAINING
THE senior ride operator at the controls the day the Thunder River Rapids Ride had two lots of 15 minute ‘refresher’ training on how to operate the ride in the months before the Dreamworld disaster.
Documents were shown to the court which show ride operator Peter Nemeth received 15 minutes of refresher training in May 2016 on how to be a deckhand, load the ride and operate the ride.
A second lot of 15 minutes was completed in June.
Mr Nemeth said he was not sure why the three components were all at the same time.
“It could have been in relation to an updated procedures,” he said.
The documents show that Mr Nemeth’s training was conducted by a Jason Johns.
Counsel assisting the coroner Ken Fleming asked Mr Nemeth if he remembered training with Mr Johns.
“No, I not to my recollection,” he said.
Mr Nemeth had completed an hour and 45 minutes of training in August 2015 to become a level two operator.
On the day of the disaster on October 25, 2016, Mr Nemeth was acting as a level three operator.
Mr Nemeth also explained the procedures for using the emergency stop button, which shuts down the conveyor belt quickly.
“If the operator was incapacitated and there was no one else at the control panel and operator number two could not be there and no one could access that panel, that’s when that button becomes relevant on the unload side,” he said.
Mr Nemeth said the button would only be pressed if the person near the main control panel was incapacitated or not at the panel.
RIDE OPERATOR HIT EMERGENCY STOP BUTTON ‘TWO OR THREE TIMES’
THE ride operator at the control panel of the Thunder River Rapids ride on the day of the Dreamworld disaster said he hit the emergency stop button “two or three” times before the two rafts collided, a court has heard.
Ride operator Peter Nemeth was in control of the ride on the day of the tragedy and said he noticed the water level dropping in the moments before the incident.
He said when he noticed he could see the safety rails.
“It only takes a few seconds for the rafts to sit (on the safety rails),” Mr Nemeth said.
“It seemed obvious to me that the water levels were down and the pump stopped working.
Mr Nemeth said he was on the ride when the water levels dropped a week before.
He then looked over and saw a raft stuck on the loading area.
“I do remember seeing the second raft,” he said.
“I saw the second raft coming over the conveyor belt.”
DREAMWORLD STAFF’S SAFETY FEARS REVEALED
Mr Nemeth said at that stage there was between five and 10 metres between two rafts.
He said he then pressed the slow stop button which would stop the conveyor belt within eight seconds.
“It didn’t stop even though I pressed it two or three times,” Mr Nemeth said.
Counsel assisting the coroner Ken Fleming then asked Mr Nemeth if he saw the two rafts collide and what happened after that.
“I don’t want us to go through those details (of what happened) only to say one raft went up vertically and there was a disaster after that,” he said.
Mr Nemeth said he saw what happened and called a “code 222” to alert the park of an emergency and hit the alarm at the rapids ride.
The court heard on the morning of the crash Mr Nemeth has been working on the Tower of Terror and Giant Drop before being sent to the Thunder River Rapids Ride after lunch.
As he went to the man the ride, he was told the pump had broken down twice that day and if it happened again they would have to shut down the ride for the day.
KIDS STRAPPED TO RAFT AS HORROR UNFOLDED
THE two children in the raft which flipped on the Thunder River Rapids Ride remained strapped in until the conveyor belt had completely stopped, the inquest has heard.
Kate Goodchild’s daughter Ebony, 12, and Cindy Low’s son Kieran, 10, had previously been believed to have been thrown from the raft.
In cross-examining forensic crash investigator Senior Constable Steven Cornish, barrister acting of Ms Goodchild and Luke Dorsett’s families, Robert Davis, asked: “The two children in the raft weren’t thrown out of the raft. They remained in place until it stopped and then climbed out of the raft?”
“Yes,” Snr Const. Cornish replied.
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Snr Const. Cornish also told the Southport Coroner’s Court he was not sure if the tragedy would have been prevented if the ride was stopped when ride operator Peter Nemeth noticed the water levels were lowering.
He said he was not clear when Mr Nemeth noticed the water levels drop so he could not answer the question.
The court heard the water levels dropped at a rate of 200mm every 20 seconds when one of the pumps fail.
Snr Const. Cornish said the disaster could have been prevented if Courtney Williams pressed the quick stop button in the final seconds between the raft flipping and Ms Goodchild being caught in the mechanisms.
The pump had failed twice earlier that day and on both those occasions the conveyor was stopped and the pump restarted without incident.
THE ‘CRITICAL’ 20 SECONDS AFTER RAFTS COLLIDED
A FORENSIC crash investigator has told the second day of the inquest into the Dreamworld tragedy there was 20 critical seconds after the Thunder River Rapids rafts collided and if the emergency stop button was pressed it may have prevented some injuries.
Senior Constable Steven Cornish told Southport Coroner’s court the slower stop button, which takes eight seconds to bring the Thunder River Rapids Ride conveyor to a halt, was pressed ten seconds after the incident.
Under cross examination he was asked if the emergency stop button was pressed would it have avoided the tragedy which killed Kate Goodchild, Luke Dorsett, Roozi Araghi and Cindy Low.
“I would not have avoided it,” he said.
“It may have limited some injuries. Possibly.”
The first day of the inquest heard the ride operator close to the emergency stop button, which takes two seconds to work, did not know what the button was for and was told not to worry about it.
INSIDE THE DREAMWORLD CORONIAL INQUIRY
Snr Const. Cornish today told the court there was ten seconds between the rafts first hitting and the slower emergency stop button being pressed.
The rafts first collided at 2.05.03pm on October 25, 2018 and the conveyor belt on the ride did not come to a complete stop until 2.05.22pm — almost 20 seconds after the first collision.
Sen Const. Cornish said after studying CCTV of the disaster, the “cadence” of the slowing of the ride showed that the eight-second stop button must have been pressed.
“It looks like it wasn’t pressed until the raft was inverted,” Sen. Const. Cornish said.
Under cross examination by barrister for Luke Dorsett’s family, Robert Davis, the forensic crash officer said it was a “hypotheses” but after analysis of the CCTV and testing the cadence of the ride slow down, it appeared the button was pushed just after 2.05pm, about 10 seconds after the two rafts crashed into each other.
“If the button was pushed it was done ten seconds after the contact of the two rafts?” Mr Davis asked.
“Yes,” Sen. Const. Cornish said.
“Six seconds after Ms Goodchild fell out of the raft?” Mr Davis asked.
“Yes,” Sen. Const. Cornish said.
“Four seconds after Mr Dorsett fell out of the raft?” Mr Davis asked.
“Yes,” Sen. Const. Cornish said.
The officer also told the court if the e-stop button, which would have stopped the ride in two seconds, had been pressed injuries to the four people who died could have been “limited”.
Sen Const. Cornish told the inquest all the operational components of the Thunder River Rapids ride were working as they were meant to on the day of accident in 2016.
Sen Const. Cornish says he has “probably viewed it close to 1000 times”, referring to the CCTV of the fatal accident.
The inquest heard police and investigators were never able to completely replicate the flipping of a raft in testing they did after the fatal accident.
“It would grab some of the rubber and let go,” Snr Const. Cornish says of the planks grabbing the rafts.
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